At last some time to visit the beach! Every day of my life is water themed this year. At this rate I will be nothing but water by the time I leave for Banra.
However, my main reason for visiting was not the waves. I wanted to see the new art exhibit hosted within the sea.
The works are by this cool artist named Walton Kearney. I’ve been a fan for a while after finding some of his early works online. He started growing flowers in the seats of the bus that flew past his building. Every day he caught the same one, and watered the seeds wedged in the cracks between the windows and the seats. Pretty neat he got funding for an actual display.
The point of these new creations is to mix the greenery of the city with the blueness of the water. I saw them build (or rather grow) the platforms in the harbour over the last six months in a spot away from the main seaweed harvest spots. Each has a solid green lawn base, with blue flowers forming vibrant steps up to another emerald ridge. All are a rough T shapes, a splutter in the sea.
A midweek day ensured silence apart from me and some veterans. Their innards are visible around faded bathing suits. The science makes sense, but the way everything fits together is still remarkable. One had a huge band of gold across their chest, the cogs ticking, pumping real blood to the rest of his body. Another had gleaming legs up to the thigh. So it goes across all of them.
Does Deni get jealous of their mesh of flesh and metal?
When they dived in flashes of gold catch the afternoons sun. They look like the Butter Mouse when she swims close to the surface.
The idea is to recognise the harmony between solid and liquid. You can clamber to the top, or dive beneath the surface. Take time to relax with a drink from a vending bear hidden behind foliage. All for free. I think Kearney wants us to appreciate how easily we can grow these treasures. That was must not take our horticultural skills for granted.
Made me think about next year again. What I can achieve. If Walton Kearney got here from seeds, what can I create in Banra?
Or should I grow my own way at the Stitch?
At least for now I can enjoy myself.
Clip: For a moment I thought this was a clip of the harbour. Until I saw those buildings. The Butter Mouse calls again, and the jigsaw continues.